Our Obsessions
by Capricious Cirsium
Summary: It's their sixth year. Lily's becoming more and more anxious, she could swear she saw someone outside her window that night. Snape's used to watching her from afar, but he's had it with that. He's a rising star in the Death Eater society and from now on he'll do as he pleases. James is determined to protect his loved ones and he knows the enemy.They've all got sweet obsessive minds
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer:

This is a fanfiction story borrowing a couple of characters from the magnificent world created by

J. K. Rowling, and I don't claim any ownership over them or any other thing you might recognize from the Harry Potter books.

Chapter one: Summer Obsessions

"Don't! Don't do it, it's just a thought, just a thought, nothing more. It can't harm you, it doesn't change anything." Despite her fullest determination she still did it. It being checking her closet once more. Nothing there, no ghosts, no snakes, no robbers and certainly no death eaters. She proceeded, doing her special ritual. First checking under her charming cherry wood desk, it had belonged to her grandmother once. She then knelt down, allowing her Titian red locks to softly sweep against the floor as she searched under her bed. It was ridiculous, she knew that all right. She finished by gently stretching out her hand to see if the window was shut. It was. Like it had been the all the other 46 times she had checked it. "Fine" she thought slipping under the covers, resting her head soporifically against the cold pillow. But it wasn't fine, it never was. These obsessions were killing her! A few minutes later she was up again, this time picking up a black shirt that she had lazily thrown onto the floor. Black was such an ominous colour. She hid it beneath a grey sweater. Then finally was she able to go to sleep. Sweet sleep.

She woke up tired that morning. She was a mess, she knew it already, and the one gaze in the mirror confirmed that she looked the part. The dirty violet circles under her eyes glowed against her ivory skin like a pair of bizarre poisonous butterflies. My, she felt poetic today. She washed her hands, the touch of pure water crushing on her skin was soothing. An itchy sensation made her look down. Her hands were aflame with small bloody cracks, spreading about on her hands like roots. A moment later she was dressed, she skipped down to the kitchen, she'd never been one to miss breakfast. Her mother, June, had already left for work. She was an pharmacist at the small apothecary of Cokeworth. Her father, who was busy with a buttered crumpet at the moment, was the least disliked maths teacher at the nearby high school. She took after him in many aspects. They were both quite introverted and thoughtful. Too make sure his daughter didn't fall behind during the school year he prepared advanced problem solving for her. Lily was enormously grateful, she loved maths and she knew most wizards struggled even with simple logic.

"Well I'm off! Have a nice day Lily dear!"Mr Evans rose and exited. Lily heard the door close. A moment later she was joined by her older sister. Their relationship had been shaky for the last seven years or so. One had to tread carefully when dealing with Petunia. Luckily, this summer she was mostly preoccupied with her new boyfriend. Though Lily had never met the guy, rumours of his grand (in multiple ways) character had not escaped her. But she was happy for her sister, truly she was.

"You were up late last night. I heard you walking." Petunia mutters indifferently. So she's trying to have a conversation then. That's good.

"Yes, I had to check some things... the usual"

"You'd think they'd have a cure for that at your freakschool." Petunia used the word "freak" a lot. Especially when Lily or magic was involved. Lily sighed.

When she had finished her bowl of cereals, the unhealthy kind, she had to come up with something to do. Normally, she would have met Sev and discussed plans for the summer or relaxed under the shadow of their beech tree. But that was out of the question. She had forgiven him so many times and she felt like the only thing she could do that would have an impact on him was to avoid him. Then maybe he would rethink his ambitions and become the polite boy she once knew. But she had other reasons as well. It had been Marlene who notified her about it first. The strange looks Sev kept sending her. The way his obsidian eyes blazed when he thought no one was looking. Those eyes could set water on fire. It didn't quit add up with the rest if him, an austere, scrawny boy who was very guarded even around her. She had barely even heard him laugh. He always came across as quite aloof, though the right words from Lily could make his cheeks burn. Once she had observed these passionate stares she had been alarmed. At first she had thought he was crossed with her but when she asked him he had refuted it immediately. Then it had occurred to her that he might be having a crush on her. She didn't quite believe it but so many things would be explained. But then again maybe he wasn't. She decided that after the "lake incident" she had better keep him at a distance, Lily didn't want to lead him on or anything. She was a forgiving person and she loved her best friend, in a way reserved to best friends, but he had to realize that he was putting their friendship at stake when pursuing the dark arts.

Lily decided to have a pick nick for herself on a cliff, it wasn't that big but she liked it. It was one of the places where she and Petunia had liked playing and she wasn't worried about bumping into Sev, even though he had a knack for finding her. She had saved this one place as her own secret spot. She sat down amidst the pansies and harebells and enjoyed the view. The whole town was at display, it had a lazy air during summer. She couldn't see her house but she could clearly see the playground. She had brought some things to busy herself with. She began sketching the city landscape but tired after half an hour or so. She preferred portraits to landscapes. She read a chapter of "The Great Gatsby", but then lay down as the heat got to her. The direct sunlight had tired her and she sought shadow near some fragrant lilacs. The scent was intoxicating. She would never fall to sleep in a place like this, not even after having slept so little in the past week. But she closed her eyes and enjoyed the gentle breeze and the menacing smell of approaching rain hanging in the air. She stood up but had to sit down, her vision went black. Low blood pressure, how very Lilyish. She climbed down as fast as she dared knowing not to strain herself as she was exhausted from sleep deprivation and her blood pressure told her to take it slow. When she was just down the cliff a small summer rain broke out fulfilling the earlier promise . She walked calmly towards her house but the rain rapidly intensified. At least it was warm. Then the sky was illuminated by lightening. Then came thunder. Lily wasn't afraid but the sky had turned a cool grey and it was getting chillier by the second. She spurted the last bit, taking the short cut through the playground. She stopped short as she saw four hooded men. She knew right away that they were death eaters or aspiring death eaters. They had their backs turned to her and she stayed still. Crap, she hadn't even got her wand with her. Why where they here? It could only be because of Severus. Three hooded figures disapparated and one was left. Standing still as if contemplating something a moment, he then turned around and saw..

"Lily?" The rain blurred his vision as he softly formed her name.. But she had already picked up the pace.

Lily ran as fast as she could the short distance home. She shut the door behind her and locked it. She fell down, catching her breath. Her throat ached and she was about to cry. "Don't!" She said to herself but as of lately she never seemed to take her own advice. She couldn't stop the tears from falling any longer. What was wrong with her? This last year she had been so emotional and frankly... weak. She wasn't a little girl any more and she should be able to take care of herself. Lily sat thinking for a while, hugging her knees tightly. After having avoided becoming hysterical she entered the kitchen and glanced at the clock, it was 7 pm. Her parents should be back by now. A pink post-it on the fridge informed her that they had gone to visit grandpa and Petunia was out with Vernon. Dinner was in the oven.

The pale moonlight lit the room, illuminating all flaws. Her alarm clock had to be adjusted so the cable didn't brush against it. The same ritual as yesterday night began. When she secured the window shut her eyes were fixed upon that silver orb outside, slightly obscured by clouds. The moon was full. She thought of Remus and her heart was stricken with sadness. Was he in much pain? A rustling sound from the bushes outside startled her. She froze, she wasn't good at dealing with fear. A dark silhouette gracefully disappeared, swallowed by shadows. Lily thought she saw the reflection of a light face. But it might as well have been an animal. But it was a bit large. A deer maybe but that seemed unlikely. Or, her mind wandered back to earlier, it could have been a werewolf. She fetched her wand from the top drawer and placed it on her nightstand. Just in case, she thought. Strange things kept occurring all summer. She had lost her handbag when she had been out. It had been stolen she was sure. Lily wasn't the type to wear a handbag but she had worn one strapped to her shoulder because she had had on a skirt that day. She was feeling watched rather often and it worried her. In the middle of the summer Severus had stopped writing to her. First she was concerned but she figured it was best to let it go. He might actually be back to "normal" and able to enjoy his summer.

* * *

James stared at the letters in his hands. There were 17 letters on yellowish paper, no addresses and no names. They were from Snape to Lily, though they had never reached the intended person, instead they were grasped in James' hands. It all started with Lily telling Alice telling Marlene telling him that Snivellus bothered her by sending letters all the time even though the two,_ finally, _weren't on speaking terms. So feeling a bit protective as he did it he managed to curse Snivellus owl to send him the letters instead. It had been very difficult but Moony had found a suiting spell. He hesitated for a moment but then opened the oldest one.

_Lily,_

_I know I've been a fool. I'm sorry I hurt you and I'll do anything to set it right. Your last letter was like torture, you're my best friend. Of course I care about you, a lot, Lily, I really do. Please meet me at the usual spot tomorrow around noon. I have something to show you, you'll like it!_

_Yours,_

_Severus_

Not hesitating a split second this time he opened the next.

_Lily,_

_You didn't come today. That's okay. I understand. It really hurt my feelings to see that you don't care enough about me to come. But it's okay. Nobody does. My mother hasn't spoken to me all summer either. I guess that's just life, my life at least. I wished you would come see me._

_Always yours,_

_Severus_

That was.. creepy, James thought. Clearly he was trying to make her feel guilty bringing up his mother like that. Obviously a lie, Snivellus had always been a liar.

_Lily,_

_I thought about when we were little. Remember the time you were scared that your parents would be angry for coming home late? And I told them that it was all my fault. We were so close back then, what happened? Surely one word in the heat of the moment isn't enough to erase seven years of friendship. _

_Yours,_

_Severus_

_Lily,_

_I thought about dying today... Nothing seems to matter any more now that you don't speak to me._

_Sev_

And there were 13 more following the same themes: making Lily feel guilty and care, desperate pleas for meetings and forgiveness, upsetting her by writing about how he was suicidal. Snivellus was a far more obsessive, manipulative, creepy git than James had ever given him credit for. This was scary, Snape was a real predator trying to lure Lily into meeting him by playing on her incomparable kindness. James was positively furious, his body trembling with anger. He hadn't expected his rival to be quite that twisted. The last letters were disgusting him and he was concerned for Lily, weren't the two of them almost neighbors? His thoughts were interrupted by the door flinging open. A tall, muscular teenage boy entered. James's face lit up.

"Padfoot!" James hug his best friend. He loved his sort of brother and he wasn't afraid of showing it.

"Hey! You've grown!" James examined his broad shouldered fellow marauder. James was 6 feet 2 so he wasn't exactly short himself but he was a bit annoyed that Sirius had outgrown him. All his life he had been the taller of the two but now with Padfoot measuring 6 feet 4 he felt odd. Padfoot leaned against the wall, revealing a muddy trunk left at the threshold.

"You're staying?" Sirius had been strangely quiet, normally there was no stopping him.

"My parents threw me out. My mother cursed me", Sirius paused holding his left arm up. It was coated with red scars. "I tried to get rid of them on the knight bus but it didn't work that well" He flashed his friend forced grin.

"Maybe mum can do something about it" James smiled reassuringly. The letters had completely escaped his mind.

"Then I'm off to Liverpool to live with Andromeda. I haven't managed to talk to her yet."

"Doesn't she have a little child, Nymphelia or something?" James asked.

"Yeah Nymphadora, she's a darling. Bit me last time I saw her. It's only until I find somewhere to live." Sirius started twisting a raven black lock around his finger, a habit he had when he was worried, which truthfully wasn't often.

"Don't be daft Padfoot, you're staying here" There was a short silence. Gone were all the troubles.

"Thanks mate"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The Marauder summit

Sirius looked around him, he felt disoriented. Where was he? I didn't take too long until he recognized the room. It was one of the spare bedrooms in Cirsium Hall, otherwise known as the Potter manor. His own trunk, stained with dried mud from yesterday's journey, looked out of place in the neat and stylish room. He sat up. Sirius was in a huge four-poster bed with midnight blue curtains decorated with embroidered stars. He smiled to himself, his new home for the summers. He had spoken to Mr and Mrs Potter, they both already considered him an extra son of theirs, and they had agreed to letting him stay there. Insisted even. He thought perhaps that they were grateful that James had so many close friends because it meant that there were young people in the house all the time. Sirius opened the balcony door and tasted the smell of freshly cut grass. The Potter family was, like his own, a very rich one. But according to Sirius the Potters used their money better, investing in properties and saving a fair amount. The Blacks on the other hand, gave money to fanatic pure blood organisations and lived in extravagance. Sirius squinted his eyes in the strong daylight, he must have slept for a long time. A modestly sized lake glittered where an enormous quidditch field ended. Above the cut grass flew two men on broomsticks. Mr Potter tried to stop his son from scoring yet another goal, dead serious as he accelerated towards James to force him further away from the goal hoops. Sirius smiled, Mr Potter would never grow up, nor would Prongs. His best friend flew his fastest towards Potter senior's right and then plummeted down several meters before passing by Mr Potter who had tried to block his right. Too late did he realize his son's stunt. James threw the quaffle through the middle hoop and raised his right hand in the air triumphantly. He circled the pitch at an incredible speed and when nearing the house he stopped in the air to salute his friend. James put on his most self-satisfied grin, the one that would chase away Lily in a second, and bowed to his newly found audience. Padfoot cheered him on in his pajamas.

Mr Potter and his beloved son walked through the flourishing Victorian garden towards the manor. When they entered, the older one offered to clean both broomsticks and the younger ran up to greet his friend. Navigating through the enormous manor was not an issue for it's youngest master. Two stairs up and next to his own bedroom awaited Sirius, in the starry room. Padfoot was fully clad in a concert T-shirt and a pair of jeans.

"Padfoot you're awake!"

"Congratulations on the game. Mr Potter's still giving you a run for your money"

"Call him dad, Padfoot. I wanted to beat you both but mum thought it best we'd let you sleep" Sirius smiled to himself, glad to hear Mrs Potter cared so much about him.

"So what are we going to do today? We have the _whooole _summer to pull pranks and play quidditch" Sirius asked. James eyes suddenly became serious behind his glasses.

"Well actually there's something I wanted to discuss with you" he shifted uncomfortably at the memory of his hated rival's letters.

Closely followed by his friend, James walked into his room. It was just as big as Sirius's but extraordinarily messy. Clothes, books and candy wrappers were all over the place. James produced the letters from his top drawer. Padfoot eyed him quizzically. He accepted the letters and began reading. Sirius sat down on James's bed and stared at his friend even more puzzled when he saw the name of the intended recipient. But he read on. The current reader shared a trait with the girl whom the letters had been written for. Neither of them could ever mask their emotions. On Sirius face read anger, loathing and concern, changing back and forth throughout the short reading session. When he put the last one down he faced his mate.

"That stalker! We need to do something prongs, Evans's could be in real danger, that guy's a bloody sociopath" James couldn't agree more.

"What do you suggest then Padfoot, we can't really pay Snivellus a visit can we?" James sighed.

"I think it's time for a marauder meeting. Today." Sirius exclaimed eagerly. James grinned, he had missed the other ones too. They had been away for almost all of summer. He had had Remus help him to acquire the letters, unknowingly since the downright honest guy would never contemplate compromising Lily's privacy. After that Moony had gone to see his aunt in France (there had been rumors circulating that the famed Anatole Fortune had discovered a "cure" for lycanthropy). Peter had been in Ireland for three weeks and was due to come back any day now. James hadn't seen Padfoot (before he arrived at his house) other than in the enchanted pocket mirror because Sirius's parents had grounded him (Sirius had expressed his opinions on death eaters, and his ideas were clearly not liked in the most pure blood maniac household of them all). So James had been lonely for a while, which was a completely new concept to him. Solitude scared him.

"A Marauder's summit it is then"

* * *

Remus Lupin, proud wizard and werewolf, had just returned from Lyon with his family. The Lupins had had a great time even though the trip had been, seen from the original purpose, all in vain. It had been Monsieur Fortune himself that had spread the rumors, a desperate attempt to get into the papers. Mr Lupin had seen Anatole Fortune himself in order to protect his son's identity. The usually so polite and reserved John Lupin had been outraged by Fortune's fraud, but it hadn't been the first time their expectations weren't met. John Lupin had dedicated his life to saving his only son from his condition. Time after time had they been let down, and he wished it was _he_ who had been bitten instead. To go after a child like that was truly... Beastly.

Remus smiled as he saw the familiar handwriting in the mail. He was invited to Cirsium Hall for the weekend. An upcoming Marauder summit. "Prepare for mischief" Was added in Sirius's almost illegible handwriting. Two hours later he arrived at the country house. Mrs Potter was the first one to greet him.

"Good to see you again, Remus dear!" Remus looked around him, finding Elizabeth Potter kneeling behind a rosebush. Occupied with her garden as always.

"Hello mrs Potter! The roses are looking great" Elizabeth smiled, it was from her James had gotten his lopsided grin.

"They better be. The boys are inside"

Remus found James and Sirius in James's room stuffing themselves with candy.

"Moony!" The two marauders said in unison.

"Here, come, eat" Sirius ushered him in. A handful of mixed sweets plopped down in his lap as he sat down on the crimson carpet.

"The best thing about this place, definitely the muggle candy!" Padfoot said with his mouth full of jelly beans. Remus chose a bar of Swiss chocolate from the plethora of confection.

"So what's this all about?" Moony demanded. The ambiance in the room changed completely. James looked at him dead serious.

"Since Peter's still in Dublin we might as well begin. Padfoot, hand him the letters"

"Are these _Lily's_ letters?! Have you read her letters James! I trusted, or I hoped, that when I helped you with that spell you wouldn't use it like this. Gee, Prongs this is crossing the line" Remus said exasperated but he didn't seem too surprised. "You're creeping me out"

"No, Snape's the bad guy here not James." Padfoot defended his friend.

"For writing her letters?" Remus said incredulously.

"Will you just read the damned letters" Padfoot barked. Lupin picked them up. He, unlike Padfoot, showed no emotion while reading them. Once he was finished however, he looked up with understanding.

"It was not right of you to read her letters. But I think something has to be done"

They discussed talking to Lily, but it wouldn't be a good idea they decided since she'd probably be infuriated that they had read her letters. As she had every right to be, Lupin had commented.

"We could go see Snivellus" Padfoot suggested.

"What good would that do when we're not allowed to use magic?" James said blankly.

"Maybe it's best that we get Lily away from there?" Lupin looked at his friends.

"Yeah, that's great, she could stay here with us" James continued excited. Padfoot slapped his forehead.

"I think she'd be more willing to stay with one of her_ friends_" Moony said meaningfully. Prongs always insisted Lily liked him more than she wanted to admit.

"Like McKinnon?"

Despite the distance between their homes, Marlene and James had grown up together. Mrs McKinnon and Mrs Potter were sisters and they believed in keeping the family together. James had known her for far longer than he had been a marauder and they were still good friends. Mrs Potter had had hopes that Marlene's sweet and shy disposition would rub off on her own wild boy. Instead it had been the other way around. Self-confident Marlene, gryffindor chaser and tomboy, was just as bold and unstoppable as her cousin. She was also a close friend of Lily's.

* * *

"Stay still!" Severus shouted at the old man on the floor reaching for his wand. He was battered and lay crouched in the corner. Severus enjoyed the situation. He was in control and the look of terror on the elderly wizard's face was priceless. If only it had been Potter's face instead. Potter was just as much a fool as this man who had tried to defy the Dark Lord. He had had this coming for him. Lucius voice sounded from an adjacent room, it was time to leave. They had taken what they came for. Severus ruthlessly kicked the man one last time before disapparating alongside the others. Once in the playground near Spinner's end the four teenagers removed their masks and were immediately covered by raindrops.

"Good spell work today Severus" The silky voice belonging to Lucius said. He along with Rosier and Avery disappeared. Severus thought about today. What a great feeling to finally have been the one to deal out the blows. Never again would he be what Potter and Black had made him for five years. He was stronger now and he would have no mercy on his opponents any more. He spun around to head for his house. Somebody stood 20 meters away. He opened his mouth just as the figure hastily darted away:

"Lily?..."

As it turns out that was all he saw of Lily that summer, or rather all Lily knew he saw of her. He tried making contact with her but she wouldn't reply on his letters. So he had to resort to looking at her the way he had before he officially met her. He knew Lily wasn't fine without him. She was unstable.

* * *

Petunia closed the door behind her as softly as she could. She tiptoed up to the second floor, careful not to wake her parents up. She had been out way past curfew. As she walked past the her sister's room she noticed that the lights were still on. She opened the door quietly. Lily jumped.

"Ahh! Petunia! Don't do that" Lily said recovering from the instant shock.

"_Shh, Lily. I don't wanna wake mum and dad up._" Petunia whispered.

"No risk. They're at grandpa's again." Their parents had been visiting Mr Evans's father a lot lately with him being at the hospital." Petunia's eyes scanned the room.

"Why are you packing? You're going somewhere?" She motioned to the half packed bag on the armchair.

"Yes, to Marlene's. She lives in Scotland. She invited me over for the rest of the summer and I feel like it would do me good to come away for a while. Plus, she seemed very eager for me to come. I think she's had enough of her brothers Lily smiled, Petunia was being unusually nice but she figured she just didn't want Lily to tell on her.

"How are you getting there? It's quite a bit from here"

"Her parents are coming by tomorrow and they'll apparate, erhm, give me a ride"

* * *

Snape walked up to the yellow brick house with determined steps. The windows were barely visible for the thick layer of ivy. Lily had had no right to treat him like this, avoid him as if he were dirt. After a summer of neglect was he finally about to confront her. He rang the doorbell and much to his disappointment it was Petunia who answered. She was clearly disappointed as well, she must have been expecting someone else.

"Where is she?" Snape demanded the confused face of Petunia. Petunia's eyes narrowed, she had gotten an idea of what was going on between her sister and this boy. Whether it was a last shred of her protective older sister instincts or her pure contempt for this boy that made her stand up to Snape is impossible to know.

"She's not in the house, not that _you_ should care" Severus shot her a dirty look.

"You liar, tell me where she is, filthy muggle!" He retorted irascibly. He tried to intimidate her by taking out his wand.

"Go away or I'll fetch my father!" She lied, her parents weren't even in town. But Petunia was certainly not one to be commanded. Snape brought the tip of his wand to her face. He gave the muggle the most wicked look he had to offer and at that her calm composure faltered.

"She left yesterday. Went to a friend's house." Petunia regarded him with distaste.

"Who?" But she didn't care to answer.

"WHO? You imbecile, tell me who or I'll blast your face to bits" Was it Potter?

Petunia seemed to be fighting back tears now. She didn't want this creep to be around her sister. Her envy of her sister was not enough to overshadow their sisterly love. Just when she was about to give away her sister's location were they joined.

"What's going on here?!" A gruff voice interrupted. Vernon Dursley had never had better timing.

"Nothing." Snape swiftly put his wand away and studied the big guy cautiously.

"Well, I suggest you move on then" Vernon said, self-assured. He was born a boss. Snape withdrew defeated but not before flashing Petunia a last threatening glare.

Author's note:

A big thanks to the two who commented, you made my day :)


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter three: A smell of incense and fear

"LILY!" Marlene enveloped her best friend in a tight hug. Marlene couldn't help but to notice how bony Lily felt. Had she been losing weight over the summer?

"Marly, I've missed you so much" Lily beamed at the blonde.

"Then why didn't you come earlier?"

"I don't know... I honestly don't" Lily stood in the entrance of the old McKinnon Castle. It was like a tiny version of Hogwarts, complete with two towers and a great view. It was cozy in an unkempt way, there were cracks in the floor and the hangings were faded. It always surprised Lily when wizards had broken possessions when all it took to mend them was a flick of their wand. She supposed it had to do with the old protective spells Marlene had told her guarded the castle. Maybe such strong magic made it impossible to meddle with the objects inside.

Marlene introduced her to her two younger brothers, or monsters as she fondly called them. They too sported the McKinnon trademark, thick yellow-blonde hair. Before Lily was subjected to any of their pranks, Marlene wisely steered her to the guest room.

The room was like the rest of the place freezing cold. Quilts were the only remedy Marlene said. The two chattered while Lily unpacked. Marlene had spent her summer with quidditch and gone hiking with her parents and brothers. Lily told her about her sister's new boyfriend. Dressed in multiple layers of sweaters and wool they then braved the bad weather. A short walk in the surroundings informed Lily of how isolated the castle really was. Miles and miles of highland stretched out in each direction making the McKinnon Castle the only source of light in the gloomy weather. There seemed to be no gentle breezes in this area, only wuthering winds blowing from the north. They roamed the hills for an hour before returning home, guided by the light escaping the windows of the castle.

Lily was glad to have company, she felt more sane than she had in days. Marlene was good company too, being both talkative and able to appreciate silence. She preferred Marlene to all her other girlfriends, although she knew she needed them all but in different ways. Alice was the one to offer emotional support and made sure her friends were never in need of a hug. Emmeline was the listener and she never imposed her opinions on anyone. She was the only one of the gryffindor girls to not openly have disapproved of Lily's friendship with Snape. The last gryffindor girl was Mary who was perhaps a bit of a gossip but she was constantly in a good mood and that would rub off on Lily. She was also a muggle-born so the two had shared a lot of experiences. But it was Marlene who stood up for her and made Lily toughen up. The only problem with Marlene was her unconcealed animosity towards Snape.

Marlene gazed out of the small window.

"There's a storm coming" She observed before heading to the stairs. Lily followed her down, the irresistible savour of dinner filling her nostrils. Dinner at the McKinnons was a wild affair. The risk of being peppered with peas when the grown-ups weren't watching was a big one and Marlene said that Lily should consider herself lucky that it wasn't potatoes they were having that day. Lily liked the noise and minor commotion, it was invigorating. She had to repeat to Mrs McKinnon that she wasn't bothered the slightest by the youngest McKinnons's antics, quite the contrary. But she was beginning to get a deeper understanding of Marlene's sources of constant complaint. The night crept closer and the two friends wished each other good night.

* * *

Lily Evans had become an insomniac. She had done her best to fall asleep but to no success. It was 3 o'clock in the morning and everything bothered her. A sudden intrusive thought, what if Marlene couldn't breath because her quilt covered her airways?

"No Lily, you just stay here and await sleep. No one's being suffocated" she instructed herself. A minute later she had on her slippers and searched the hallway for Marlene's room.

"Marlene" She whispered hoping that her friend was still awake. No such luck. She pushed the door open gently and entered. Oh no, Marlene was sleeping on her back! If she were to spontaneously throw up for no reason then she wouldn't be able to breathe. Lily was aware of how neurotic she sounded but she suffered from what she liked to call "nocturnal irrationality" and wasn't able to act according to reason. Walking as if in trance she arrived at Marlene's side, placing her hands on one of Marlene's arms and began to pull her to her side. At the slight movement Marlene's eyes opened wide. She let out a loud scream. Lily jumped back, scared by the reaction of her now very much alert friend.

"LILY WHAT IN MERLIN'S NAME ARE YOU DOING!" Lily was now more scared than her friend. Marlene's expression softened. "Lily, are you okay?" There was an obvious note of concern.

"I'm all right" Lily breathed deeply. "I was just checking that you were breathing... That's all" Lily said sheepishly.

"Oh, Lily. I could have hurt you, you know. You can't just do that. Are you sure you're feeling all right?"

But just as Lily was about to answer four people rushed in with wands ready.

"ARE YOU HURT GIRLS?!" Yelled Mr McKinnon clad in a flannel pyjama, looking around him, expecting some kind of intruder. Not awaiting any response he continued: "We heard noise and ..."

"Easy dad, we're fine" Marlene assured him. "I just had a nightmare and Lily came to see if I was okay" Marlene lied. Her brothers seemed disappointed with the explanation. They all lowered their wands. Lily was surprised the boys even had wands, she hadn't seen the youngest one around Hogwarts she was certain. Mrs McKinnon relaxed notably.

"My sister has told me some terrifying stories of attacks on muggles. Maybe we ought to reinforce the protective shields, Rabbie"

"Maybe that would be best" Mr McKinnon agreed. "But it can wait until morning. Back to bed everyone" He said but directed it to the two boys who seemed to think the situation very exciting. They sourly trotted away and the grown-ups followed.

"Night girls!" Marlene's mother said and put an arm around her husband as they disappeared out of the room, leaving the two girls staring at each other. Marlene was going to keep a close eye on her best friend.

* * *

Light bent in strange ways, curving and bouncing around him in a beautiful display of magic. He landed with his feet in the warm sand. It didn't take long to conclude that an outfit entirely compromised of black robes was not the best choice in the heat of July. But Snape couldn't care less about clothes. What mattered to him right now was the chains of events that had just taken place. With great excitement he recalled the events.

He had received a visit from one of the death eaters, mercifully it had been Rosier, who didn't come from quite as luxurious a background as Lucius and the others, albeit pure. Snape was embarrassed of his dysfunctional family and humble lifestyle, but as he kept reminding himself, he was working his way up. One day he would finally be able to leave that abominable house and live as he deserved. He envisioned a dark manor somewhere desolate but figured Lily would probably prefer a little town, much like Cokesworth. Snape didn't care too much as long as it was far away from people. He'd never been a butterfly of any kind, least of all a social one.

It pained Snape immensely that Rosier and Avery, both slytherins his own year, were already death eaters. They already bore the dark mark, and what for? Solely for noble ancestry. Snape who was only half a Prince but twice as intelligent as the other two had to _earn_ his place among the death eaters.

"Ready?" Evan Rosier asked. He was nice but didn't seem to care too much about anything. Not even the Dark Lord. Snape was happy enough that he wouldn't taunt him like his other classmates would. Then it hit him. The reason he hadn't been able to join the cause fully yet was because the others thought him weak. They had seen Potter make a fool of him time after time and how Lily had helped him. If only Lily would understand what an inferior position he was in and how much he wanted this to change his life, then she would know why he did the things he did. Snape felt a firm grip on his arm and awoke from his reveries. A moment later he was swept away by a storm of light.

The sombre scenery of Spinner's End changed to one of lavish splendor He was in a dining room. A great crystal chandelier caught the daylight and spread it evenly in the room. The luster of cadmium satin framed each of the windows, stretching from the floor to the ceiling, embellishing the room further. Snape looked around him in awe, mesmerized by the sight. Rosier nudged him.

"Stop gaping like that. You look like fish." Those two sentences were more than abundant for the taciturn Rosier. A tall handsome man stood in the vault, his white hair glossed furiously in the lit room.

"There you are, and you brought Severus, how nice" Lucius smiled, his voice too smooth "We shan't keep them waiting any longer." The two boys followed him through the vault and in to an airy scullery. They stopped at a suspiciously inconspicuous door clad in the same wallpaper as the walls. A forest green decorated with faded gold.

When Lucius motioned for him to enter Snape hesitated. His instincts told him to get out there as fast as he could. The urge contradicted reason as he knew his mentor Lucius had always aided him in his attempt to join the death eaters. Severus hastily made his mind up, pushing open the small door revealing a staircase. He descended shortly followed by Rosier. The dim cellar provided an effective contrast to the first floor. He noticed an odd aromatic odor probably some kind of incense. Severus cast a glance at Lucius before continuing down the narrow corridor. At his left another vault revealed a crowded room. He entered. People lay lazily on silk _chaises longues_, or stood talking in the corners. People were leaning in so near each other they almost seemed intertwined. A tall gangly man untangled himself from a group of four half-seated on an ottoman. He hurried over to meet them.

"How nice that you all could come, I'm Rabastan Lestrange. I'll find you somewhere to sit it's about time to begin" The enthusiastic host disappeared back into the crowd. Snape looked to Lucius for a clue of what more precisely was about to commence. The gathering made him uneasy. He looked around only to find that that almost every pure blood wizard loyal to the cause was there. At least the ones from _old_ families.

Lucius started making his way towards a group in the other end of the room. Snape looked for Rosier to mimic whatever move he made as he had significantly more experience with these social events, only to find him gone. An hysterical laughter broke out from the party which now included Malfoy. Snape waddled through the couches and elegantly dressed people almost knocking over a presumably very expensive vase. A large man with a double chin spun around abruptly spilling the minty green content of his drink all over Severus. Severus tried to control his anger and decided to ignore it. The corpulent man didn't care to give him an apology, he just vanished into the bacchanalia.

Snape caught sight of Narcissa Black whom he recognised from school. She was three years his senior and the love interest of Lucius. Her undisputed beauty had made the otherwise reticent girl legendary. Her silvery hair gleamed against the wine red fabric of the chaise longue. At the sight of Snape's stained shirt a curvy brunette broke out in another paroxysm of deranged laughter. The voluptuous beauty once recovered from frenzy tilted her head causing her thick locks to bounce. She surveyed him as if he were something she was about to buy. Her decision was final, she was clearly not a fan of what she saw. She parted her plush lips and promulgated to the group:

"You are not a pure-blood" Her childlike voice took Severus by surprise. She wrinkled her nose and stared at him, not bothering to conceal her distaste. Severus scowled, even among friends was he treated with contempt.

"Now, now, Bella, let's be nice shall we" Lucius came to his rescue. The brunette turned her head away ingenuously and her attention was focused on Avery. Snape was shocked by his classmate's appearance. He wore a white shirt unbuttoned enough to leave a big triangle of his chest bare. Snape turned to the group again. Lucius had joined Narcissa sitting and the two were exchanging whispers while their cheeks grew redder. Snape was soon engaged in a conversation with Rodolphus Lestrange, Bellatrix's husband, but it didn't last long. His companion's eyes went blank and he seemed to zoom into some world of his own. Bothered by Rodolphus sudden alienation Snape's eyes swept the room and fell on the merry host. The dutiful man made towards him.

"Severus was it?" Snape couldn't recall introducing himself.

"Yes. What's this I hear about something happening?" Snape hoped the man would fill him in since the growing anticipation in the packed room bordered feverish suspense.

"That was vague. Well, I suppose it's no harm telling you, you'll find out soon anyway. We're all..." He voice trailed off mid-sentence as he observed his sister-in-law flirting boldly with Avery. Rodolphus seemed unaffected, his eyes far away. Rabastan on the other hand walked over to the couple, keen to separate them. Snape was left to himself for a minute. Rabastan suddenly called for attention and the room fell silent. An odd serenity captured the room and it's dozy guests.

"Dear guests, beloved family. It is wonderful to see so many of our kind gathered here to swear allegiance to the Dark Lord!" A buzz flew through the room. Snape was bewildered, this was it. He would become a death eater. The room went black and out of the dark emerged a tall figure. Handsome yet callous but with unquestionable authority. Snape stared, hypnotized by this enigmatic man. He was not the only one. From across the room Bellatrix had abandoned her prey to gaze fixedly at the pale man, her eyes spellbound. Voldemort was pleased with their reaction to his dramatic entrance. He had always liked to put on a good show.


	4. Chapter 4

A small explanation:

I'm not a native English speaker and sometimes I mix words up. I wrote "valve" in the last chapter but what I meant was vault. Or a regular door would do I suppose. I hope you got that I wasn't talking about veins or anything. I'm so sorry for these mistakes by the way.

Chapter 4: Bitter rivals come face to face

There she stood, a paragon of celestial beauty. Her hair as if drawn by Renoir, flowed effortlessly around her shoulders, creating a cascade of artistic excellence. Even the sun had used her as canvas, having capriciously dotted her pale complexion with freckles. Severus Snape stood and watched her from afar. Wicked were the circumstances that kept them apart. He loved everything about her, from the shadow resting between her collar bones to her small and delicately curved lips. He observed captivated the way she moved her hands when she spoke, noticing each graceful movement of those long, slender fingers. She was talking to her blonde friend, whoever that was. To Snape all people around Lily were insignificant. There was a loud signal and the students on crowded platform began to flow as one towards the train. Lily disappeared with her friends in the stream of students. He smiled, it wouldn't be long until he saw to her again.

When they heard the train whistle blow Marlene joined the wrestling to get on the train. Lily and her friends had used same tactics several years now, letting Marlene elbow her way through the crowd. If they wanted a compartment of their own they had to work for it, or Marlene had to anyway. The shy first years had a way of occupying far more compartments than they needed.

Lily picked her trunk up and followed slowly behind. Emmeline and Mary were already nearing the horde of students, their heads several feet above the first years'. She felt the weight of her trunk shift.

"Black!" She explained surprised.

"At your service" He stopped to make a small bow. Lily looked around feverishly. Wherever Black were a certain other black haired boy usually were around... Black grinned.

"If it's James you're looking for, he's in there finding a place" Black nodded towards the swarm. Oh, he was still carrying her trunk.

"I should carry my own luggage. I'm not weak" Black rolled his eyes mockingly. Lily might have been smart and brave but she most definitely wasn't strong. They moved along in silence. Once inside the train it was even stuffier and people were moving both ways.

"Oh oh" Make that two things she weren't. She wasn't able to push through a crowd if her life depended on it. Black held his muddy trunk before him.

"Evans, get behind me" He started moving unaffected by the loud protests. Lily followed him, giggling. Sometimes she admired his carefree way of life. The technique worked to tremendous efficacy and they soon got to the less crowded part of the corridor. Lily caught a glimpse of her fellow Gryffindor girls. Turning to Black she thanked him smiling. He sure could be mean and immature, but he had a warmth Lily couldn't really define, but she knew he wasn't all bad.

"My pleasure. Hey, say hi to Marly for me, would you" Lily nodded and joined her friends. Marlene seemed surprised that she and Black had gotten along fine since Lily had given him quite a few detentions in the past. But Marlene knew Sirius had always had a soft spot for Lily, especially since Potter started fancying her. Most non-Slytherins their year liked Lily, something Lily herself was completely oblivious to. She had always thought people saw through her and realized that deep down she had mean thoughts about people just like anyone else. She was only better at suppressing them. She couldn't fully accept that people perceived her as kind.

* * *

In a small compartment, the one the furthest back in the Hogwarts express, sat five teenage boys. Two were engaged in a heated discussion, one stared admiringly at his own reflection in the window, one had his nose buried in a book and the last one plotted death for his enemies.

"It has definitely gotten worse. I was with my mother at Grongaël's and the whole shop was full of them. They had their dirty paws all over the place, grabbing everything they could reach. My father says it won't be long until they're acknowledged by the ministry as a lower race." Mulciber spoke with conviction. He had read his grandfather's book that had sparked much controversy in the newspaper, "The Muggle Conspiracy". _"How clever wizards were deceived"_ read below the title in italics. Great reading he said. He wasn't the only one, in fact, Evan Rosier was reading a copy of his own that very moment. The book's black and gold cover were to be seen all over town, be it discreetly stuffed away in a bag or demonstratively clasped to the chest. "The Muggle Conspiracy" had stirred up quite a lively debate.

"It's about bloody time someone put his foot down once and for all. This muggle-hugging ministry and that monkey of a minister are all cowards. They're afraid to come off as narrow-minded! But how can they possibly be narrow-minded when it's on everybody's mind!" Alvarus Nott exclaimed passionately.

"Not Dumbledore's no" Avery said casting a sideways glance at his company before returning to his reflection.

"Then Dumbledore's a damned fool. What is he thinking promoting mudbloods to prefects as if they should have any authority over us." Mulciber held his chubby hand up and started counting on his fingers.

"Dirk Cresswell the pompous new Ravenclaw prefect. The things I've heard about his mother" Mulciber smiled viciously. "Clarke, the Hufflepuff idiot, and that Delapré girl. And let's not forget Dumbledore's little favourite, miss perfect prefect Evans" Snape looked up at the mention of her name. He wouldn't let these idiots harm her but he would have to be smart about protecting her. Standing up for her now wouldn't do her any good. quite the contrary.

Snape had put a lot of thought into how this year was going to be. It would be a useful one. This year he was going to win Lily's heart, get the approval of his classmates, become a death eater and destroy Black and Potter. The two of them had cost him his friendship with Lily and almost his life as well. But this time around he wouldn't be facing them alone. Even though he preferred working alone he didn't underestimate the advantages of having a group to back him up. It had been the Dark Lord's orders that the Slytherins collaborated. If Snape managed to impress Voldemort he would be granted a place within the death eater ranks.

The five Slytherin boys had been presented with several missions. They were to spread the word of the Dark Lord, tarnish the headmaster's reputation, terrorize the muggleborns and the blood traitors. Above all, they were to keep Voldemort informed of Dumbledore's every step. The Dark Lord feared that the erudite was building up an army of his own. These were all relatively vague tasks and the Dark Lord had encouraged them in person that summer day to impress him through creativity. The more chaos the better.

What Snape read in Voldemort's instructions was the perfect opportunity to revenge himself on his two hated foes. But he wouldn't be hasty, Severus lived by the expression: "revenge is a dish best served cold". When the day came the two were going to suffer.

* * *

It happens every now and then that two people think of each other at the exactly same moment, rarely however, does this occur with two enemies. James Potter was calculating his rival's plans. Potter had a ton of reasons to despise Snape: he worshipped the dark arts, he'd pick on Wormtail, he was always snooping around, he had tried to expose his friend Remus' little secret, he had helped create the raft between Padfoot and his younger brother, and lastly: he was stalking Lily Evans. James's suspicions had been proved by those creepy letters, he wasn't ever going to let Lily see them. Snape had tried to harm the people James cared the most about and he was not going to let itgo, not even Lily could persuade him to ignore this. It would be cowardly and disloyal to do so and James Potter was certainly not a coward.

"A penny for your thoughts" Padfoot said in a high-pitched voice. James chuckled at him. Sirius's was doing his silliest impression of Greta Catchlove who was a notorious teacher's pet. He had placed his head in his cupped hands and put on an overly interested face.

"I was thinking about Snivellus actually"

"Ew! What for?" Peter said and regarded him curiously. The jovial boy had returned from Ireland just in time to catch the express. Their trip had been delayed by the ministry. Apparently they were keeping track on everyone who entered Great Britain and they had not been permitted to cross the border without filling in several documents. But of course there had been trouble. The ministry was limiting everyone's freedom and this was a very grave sign Remus concluded. It meant that things were about to change, and the climate was getting harsher in the wizarding world.

"I think he's up to something" James had his friends' attention.

"Let's not keep him waiting then"

* * *

Lily walked out of the toilet, dressed in her Hogwarts uniform with the prefect badge pinned on it. Halfway down the aisle she felt a hand on her grab her wrist, the very next moment she was dragged into a compartment. She proficiently drew her wand and pointed it to her abductor. She relaxed when she saw the familiar face, but she didn't put away her wand.

"Lily!" Snape looked at her with the same hungry eyes as he had when he was a little boy.

"What do you want Severus?" He had hoped for a warmer greeting. How he wished she would call him Sev again.

"I wanted to say hi of course, I haven't seen you all summer"

"You sure? Because I distinctly recall seeing you with some wannabe death eaters" Snape didn't like the disdain in her voice as she uttered those last words.

"Listen Lily, I want to explain..." Severus ran through the explanations he had prepared over the summer in his head. Under Lily's scrutinizing eyes they would all seem stupid. But he couldn't lose Lily!

"I'm waiting"

Severus was suddenly gripped by an urge to hold her and to never let go. It grew stronger, spread like poison through his body. Unable to control himself he took a step closer towards her, his body almost touching hers. Lily was surprised by their sudden intimacy and retreated a step, bumping into the sliding door. It seemed they were dancing a curious waltz, stumbling around each other for a while. Lily felt threatened by her partner at once. She awkwardly reached for the handle, embarrassed by the thoughts that had crossed her mind. He was her friend, just old Sev, the rest was in her head. Then his eyes caught hers. Those piercing spheres of night sky, a moment ago so cold and distant, were now all ablaze. She looked down, eager to break the contact.

"If that's all you can say than I have to move on" Lily left stuttering, making sure to look at anything but his face. Once outside with the door closed she breathed out. Since when was life this _intense. _She returned to her friends absentmindedly, an involuntary rosy blush tinted her cheeks.

Severus stood abandoned. His face flushed an angry red, that had not gone the way he had intended. He had tried to be kind and forgiving and it hadn't worked out. Lily was the one who was behaving inappropriately, not bothering to answer his letters, avoiding him, questioning him...

Just as he was about to exit and find his classmates someone blocked his way.

"Hello Snivellus" Sirius smirked. "Had a nice summer did you?" Snape looked up alarmed. This was the guy who had tried to kill him last year. He was flanked by two of his friends.

"Potter!"

"Snivellus!" James mimicked Snape's voice. Snape drew his wand, this was bad news...

Snape's eyes met Potters, spitting fire on James's cool ones. James raised an eyebrow tauntingly.

Snape recounted his brief encounter with the Dark Lord to himself. How he had asked them to _impress_ him. Voldemort wanted drama and destruction and Snape was going to throw in a bit of pain on Potter's behalf. He had this one chance, this one year. Little did Potter suspect that it was in fact he who was going to help Severus join the death eaters. But as of now it was hopeless, three against one. Potter reached for something within his pocket. Here it comes, Snape thought. He was going to use Expelliarmus, then Furnunculus he planned. Much to Snape's astonishment Potter fetched a sheaf of papers from his pocket. Behind him Black had his wand ready, Pettigrew eagerly observing. Snape studied the papers and realization hit him. His letters to Lily. He felt his cheeks burn. They were private! But it wasn't beneath someone like Potter to do that. A slight relief. She hadn't even seen the letters, he knew it wasn't like her to ignore someone like that. Now, he had to surprise them if he were to stand any chance and he would have to reclaim those letters.

"Langlock!" He pointed to Peter. Peter started choking on his tongue.

"Tarantellegra" Potter yelled furiously. Black sent him three spells in short succession. Snape dodged Potter's but was hit by Black's second. His chest started stinging like crazy. He aimed at Potter this time.

"Levicorpus!" Potter swiftly jumped aside. Black sent a violet flash towards him.

"Protego" Snape knew this wouldn't end well. The exact moment when his shield disappeared he was hit by Potter's spell.

He fell to the ground, paralyzed from the neck and down. Meanwhile Black was struggling with Peter who was panicking. Snape smirked, he was satisfied with his new spell. Black gave up, shrugged his shoulders and sent him to Lupin. Snape focused on Potter who was approaching him.

His chestnut brown eyes were cold behind his glasses. He crouched down and stared at Snape.

"If you ever mess with Evans or my friends again _I_ will finish what Padfoot started last year. You hear that" Potter stood up and the two people Snape hated the most walked out leaving him paralyzed on the floor. The school year had begun 1-0 Potter. But he was going to change that. Snape heard the melancholic whistle of the train...

They had arrived at last. Merlin knows how he was going to get out in time.

I do like constructive criticism.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Back at Hogwarts

Lily couldn't remember last time she felt this relaxed. Somehow being around her friends diminished her compulsions. To her right sat Marlene talking across the table with Mary. On her left side Alice Fortescue and Frank Longbottom were small talking happily. Alice had missed her boyfriend tremendously over the summer, having only been able to see him once. Frank was a seventh year Gryffindor and Lily thought he was quite nice. Everyone in their house agreed that they were simply made for each other. Two kinder people were not to be found anywhere. Lily watched as Alice's cheeks gained colour as Frank stroke a strand of charcoal black hair in place.

"So, who do think the new DADA teacher is?" Emmeline asked her quietly, eager to concentrate on something other than the now kissing couple.

Lily looked at the teacher's table. There were several new faces. She guessed Dumbledore had had problems finding a replacement for professor Carisskey. Their last DADA teacher lay in coma although the reason why hadn't been fully revealed. But it was suspect to say the least. Their other Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers hadn't lasted any longer than a year each, due to various reasons. Severe injuries in two cases, one had become very depressed, they could have used professor Dart as a dementor dummy had they wanted to. And Professor Roussini had been very incompetent, he sent them off alone into the forest in second year resulting in trauma and much physical damage. He had lost his temper with Pettigrew once and used a curse on him resulting in a fight with the Marauders. It had been because of that he was fired.

"The one the furthest to the left I think" Lily guessed. The man wore a large leather coat in a beige nuance. Lily wasn't sure but she thought she saw a long scar on his face. He seemed to radiate that tough guy aura.

"Yeah, he looks kind of rough don't you think? With that hair and all..." Emmeline stared at his long dark hair. It possessed that mysterious quality.

"Marauders! What took you so long guys?" Marlene said between two bites of turkey. Frank looked up and greeted them cheerfully, as did many others. They sat down at the table with their friends.

"Nothing much. Just marauding and stuff" Sirius answered and helped himself to some Yorkshire pudding.

James looked at Lily timidly. Last year he had acted like a fool. That confidence he had had around Lily was gone, he didn't want to push her any further away from him.

"How was your summer Evans?"

Lily was taken aback by his soft and civil conduct. She had expected him to say something completely different.

"It was nice enough. How was yours?" She answered observing him attentively. She felt uneasy, anticipating him to act like his usual self.

"It was great! Lots of quidditch and Sirius stayed at my house and it was just awesome" James told her enthusiastically. He was about to continue when Dumbledore announced the Sorting.

"Oh not again. It's so boring, takes like an entire hour"

"Argh.. Potter, you're such an.. such an iconoclast!"

"_Iconoclast?_, really, that's pretty lame Evans"James laughed.

The expected hour flew by fast. During the entire dinner James was being watched from the Slytherin table. Snape had managed to get out of the train thanks to the trolley lady. But he wasn't happy about it. He was even less impressed by his arch enemy talking to Lily in such a casual way. Wasn't she supposed to hate him, like she said in their third year. If only he could turn back time a few years. While he eyed the two of them cautiously the feast began. Even more plates of food appeared and there was a large "oooh" from the freshly sorted first years.

Lily had become quite hungry. Her choice fell upon a plate of toasts. She noted that Potter's hand touched just about every toast as he reached for one with a perfect golden brown colour.

"Potter! Stop grabbing those toasts!" Lily gave him an annoyed look.

"She doesn't like to eat anything that has been touched" Alice filled him in. James turned to stare at Lily.

"That's ridiculous Evans"

"No, I just don't want people to touch my food. Your hand is probably covered with germs, not more than ordinary I mean, but still.." she trailed off knowing that she wouldn't convince them.

"I agree with Lily" Lupin said giving her a kind look. The two were quite friendly because they patrolled together and they shared an interest for reading. Lily couldn't help smiling. It felt good being surrounded by friends. When they had finished they walked out together, the entire fith year of Gryffindor plus Longbottom. Potter told her about his summer a bit more in detail before making some polite inquiries. As they left together conversating she felt like everybody't eyes were on them. She blushed and looked down at the floor until they were out of view. Lily felt hopeful she was going to stand the Marauders this year.

* * *

It all happened faster than Snape could have imagined. With a thick package from Malfoy his first chance to impress the Dark Lord arrived. The Slytherin boys, Nott, Avery, Mulciber, Rosier and himself had gathered to open it in their dormitory. Avery took of the brown layers of paper. It was safely packaged. The last layer couldn't be removed easily. Nott snatched up a small note that was attached to the parcel. In Lucius neat handwriting it read:

"_Those who wish to open this must first prove to be the people they claim to be, it cannot be fooled by magic"_

"What now?" Mulciber asked impatiently. "How are we supposed to do that?" Snape suppressed a sigh. It was going to be a long year being bunched together with his classmates.

"The traditional way is blood" Snape took out his wand and made a small cut on his index finger. He smeared a drop of blood onto the package. The others followed, Avery winced but did as the others. The blood stained paper obeyed when Snape wrapped it off. Inside lay a letter and a heavy ancient book. Snape started reading the instructions. It was a rather elaborate task that lay ahead of them. Once he stopped, Nott pulled something out from between the pages of the old tome.

"This must be the thing he meant"

"We need to decide on a mudblood to use" Rosier pointed out.

"I know just the girl" Snape's heart sank when he saw Mulciber's malicious smile.

* * *

Lily watched as Marlene threw herself at her bed.

"We're back!" she announced delightfully. "Guess what girls, this year we're not gonna let the boys have all the fun. I've discussed some plans with Sirius and Peter all dinner and they're interested in cooperating" Mary just stared at her like she'd lost her mind. Lily couldn't but laugh at her friend's joy. Marlene had a charming childishness at times.

"No thanks" Lily declined. The door opened and Alice tumbled in.

"What have you been up to this late hour?" Mary surveyed her. Alice blushed an intense red and Mary started questioning her about Longbottom.

"I think that's enough Mary" Emmeline helped. "Al will have plenty of time to answer your questions tomorrow" Emmeline added and flashed a smile to Alice.

"Doesn't she remind you of a lawyer?" Mary whispered to Lily.

The girls made them ready for bed. It was like always, Emmeline and Alice were the first ones to fall asleep, followed by Mary once she'd stopped chattering to Marlene. Even when she was sleeping was she noisy, snoring loudly. Then Marlene dozed off. What was different now was that Lily hadn't fallen asleep yet. The rain lashed against the window playing a soothing melody of nature's own creation. She lay awake stuck in thought. She couldn't keep questions from coming. Were her parents okay? Was Petunia angry with her? Was Mary's snoring normal or didn't it sound just a bit muffled? Why had Potter been so civil, was he up to something?

She heard a small tapping noise at a window. She tiptoed to the large latticed window. Raindrops danced on the glass. Outside a frail owl pecked. Lily opened the window and was soaked by a cold shower. She closed it quietly and sat down on the sill with the owl in her lap.

"Oh Porthos you poor thing" She stroke his ruffled feathers in place. "What was Severus thinking sending you out in a weather like this" She took the note from the owl.

_Lily,_

_that airhead Potter cursed Porthos and he received my letters instead of you. He has certainly gone too far this time, it is as I've always said, he lacks respect for others privacy. He and his friends give wizards a bad name._

_I know it's late but I trust you're awake anyway, with your sleep issues I mean. I need to sort some things out with you, I couldn't think clear on the train. Please meet me in the trophy room, I'll be there waiting_

_Severus_

Meeting Snape in the middle of the night was out of the question. Last year they had explored the school together some nights but it would give him the wrong idea if she came now. After all she didn't agree with what he was trying to become. If he hadn't become a Death Eater already... Lily felt so bad for him, she knew he was in a tricky situation but he had to find his way out of this one alone.

Lily couldn't believe Potter would hex Porthos like that. Not after seeing him this afternoon. He seemed changed, more mature. A thought struck her as she reread the letter, she hadn't mentioned her insomnia to Snape because it first began _after_ the lake incident. Maybe he had sensed it. No she was being silly, of course he had seen the violet circles under her eyes.

She cleared her mind. She was going to have to send Porthos to reply. One glance at that pitiful owl made her change her mind. But she couldn't keep Snape waiting there all night. It would be ever so cruel.

"Don't worry Porthos, I'll go see him instead" Lily walked over to her trunk and put on a pair of jeans and a warm knitted sweater. She made sure the others were sound asleep, scooped up Porthos carefully and disappeared through the door. When she walked out of the portrait hole she got that thrill of doing something she ought not to. Lily could swear she was the worst prefect ever.

Many wizards stared at her as she walked past the row of portraits by the staircase. It made her feel so rebellious doing this. Rounding the last corner she finally arrived at the trophy room.

Snape was leaning on one of the numerous shelves of trophies and medals. He seemed fast asleep until...

"Lily!" He looked up and started making towards her. Lily was suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of danger.

"Severus" she said curtly, remembering that she wasn't there to stay. "Here's Porthos, you really shouldn't send him out when it's pouring down so". The bird perched on the hook-nosed boy's shoulder. His tangerine eyes were fixed upon her's.

"Now, now Porthos. I'm sure you'll see Lily some more" Snape tried to give Lily an assured smile but failed catastrophically. Lily noticed how nervous he seemed.

"Actually Sev, I only came to hand over Porthos" Lily turned around and left. Before she was out of sight, Snape gave it one last try:

"Doesn't it bother you what Potter did?" He asked. Lily sighed. Of course it bothered her, if it was true that was, but she wasn't up to discussing Potter yet another time with Snape.

"Not in the slightest" And she was gone; with her all the hopes he had nourished upon her arrival.

Then Snape stood abandoned, disheartened and left to brood all night.

The subject of his obsession could hardly stand the sight of him.

* * *

Lily walked hurriedly, wanting to get as big a distance between them as possible. Every now and then she glanced over her shoulder. What was she so afraid of? It's all in your head Lily, she told herself. This was all because of her nocturnal irrationality, nothing else. When she came closer to the last staircase she heard a sound. She stopped, frozen to the spot. This was it, she was getting expelled. Filch and Mrs Norris had found her. She braved a peek at the staircase.

"Oh, it's just you" She exhaled relieved. The boy jumped and spun around. His eyes widened when he saw who the voice belonged to.

"Evans? What are you doing up this late?" He examined her. His mild but suspicious brown eyes searched for clues.

"Nothing" She said innocently. She began to climb the stairs but Potter took out his wand.

"Potter what are you doing?" She asked alarmed.

"Stay back!" Potter cried threateningly.

"What's this nonsense, it's me! Lily Evans!" Lily recommenced her climb but Potter wouldn't let her up the stairs.

"Evans wouldn't be out this late" He stated. It was first then she realized he was serious.

"Come on it's me, who else could it be?"

"I can think of several. If you're Evans then prove it" He went silent for a while thinking. "What's your favourite subject?"

"Charms" He didn't seem satisfied.

"What's your favourite taste?"

"That would be sweet, I think" Lily hesitated. Why was she nervous all the sudden?

"What have I taken from you?" He asked and his eyes bore into hers.

"Taken?.. Nothing.." He raised his wand protectively. "Wait, in first year you stole my rabbit, you used it for a prank, you blew little Cabbage up in the air" She smiled fondly at the reminiscence. Lily loved her stuffed animals but she had gotten over Mr Cabbage a long time ago.

He gave her a wry smile.

"Sorry about that by the way"

"Don't think about it. The fireworks were pretty" She stared at him dumbfounded. "Wait a sec, what are _you _doing up?" The marauder laughed.

"Evans, I don't know how it has escaped your sharp eyes but I've had sleeping issues the past three years or so"

"Oh" She lit up "That makes two of us" She immediately regretted having said that. Now he would ask her to hang out with her. Only he didn't...

"We should probably get back, it's getting a bit too late and I'm feeling rather tired" His eyes swept over her "I'm sure you could use the sleep as well"

With a last mischievous smile he left her feeling strangely disappointed. Lily slunk through the hole and into the common room. The glowing embers caught her attention, she sat down on the couch and watched the fire slowly die. Once the last flame of red had been extinguished Lily crept back into bed, yet another night passed to a ballad of erratic raindrops.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: A vial of frozen thoughts

Snape saw her fiery red hair from the window and darted down the stairs. He couldn't wait to give her his present. She was sitting alone on the marble brink of a fountain reading from a piece of paper. Perfect. It was quite hard to find her alone like this; she was perpetually watched by that horrid quidditch girl or Lupin.

A small breeze made Lily shiver, the summer had successfully metamorphosed into chilly autumn. The fountain was situated in the middle of a small and welcoming courtyard but somehow people always seemed to overlook this place. Lily heard the sound of footsteps approaching and looked up from the paper. She stared at the awkward boy in front of her.

"Hello Severus" Lily thought that perhaps he'd keep a distance from her since he had seemed annoyed last time they met. That time it had been the middle of the night, a secret rendezvous in the trophy room, but it was surprising that he'd speak to her amid so many people. Talking with mudbloods didn't exactly fly with the Death Eater policy.

"Lily! How are you?" She wanted to ask him the same question once she had observed him more carefully. Daylight didn't treat him well as he came across sickly and pale, his dark hair poorly washed and his countenance altogether odd.

"I'm doing good, how about you?" Her smile made his heart melt in the most cliche kind of way.

"Fine thanks, erhm.. Lily I've got something for you" Lily looked at him unsure what to say.

"Why? My birthday was a long while ago" Snape drew out a small box from one of his pockets. Lily accepted it somewhat reluctantly. It was the kind of box you'd store some gillyweed or beetle eyes in. Her slender, alabaster fingers undid the bow knot eagerly, even though she had mixed feeling about receiving it she could never resist the temptation of a closed box. She loved unwrapping presents. Snape remembered from when they were little how excited she would be every birthday and around Christmas. Snape didn't have much experience of that kind other than the presents Lily gave him. His mother usually gave him something they had in the house for his birthday. An old shirt, a tattered book or a "family quilt", with squares added for each generation. His father hadn't congratulated him since he was five. It was around then his alcohol problems started.

"Oh, it's nice. But what's it for?" Lily examined the small vial that had lied in the box. Inside a violet liquid shimmered, there was mist inside the bottle but at the same time the glass was covered in purplish ice flowers. She held it up to the sun, mesmerized by it. Snape's mind on the other hand was completely and solely consumed by watching Lily.

"Trying to poison her, Snivellus?" James Potter materialized from nothing. He stared at Snape with intense loathing. Lily was surprised he could have so passionate feelings for a person he hardly even knew.

"Go away" Snape growled. Why did Potter have to ruin everything, Snape thought sourly. He always managed to find him and Lily whenever they were having a private moment.

Lily looked from one to the other, clutching the container in her freezing hands. Those two boys together meant conflict. Around them people were gathering fast as they always did whenever Potter was involved in something. Lily's mind raced, she had to say something to avoid the issuing fight. She felt Snape's gift leave her hands.

"What's this, amortenia? Come on Snivellus, that's low even for you. You disgust me!" Potter put the potion inside his robes and glared at his arch enemy through his glasses. Snape reddened as he felt the hostile crowd stare him down. No, now they'd all think he'd slip Lily a love potion as if he were some obsessive lover. He wasn't able to come up with a good retort, all he could manage was incoherent mutters. He could distinctly hear the squeaky laughter of Pettigrew. Now he was beginning to sweat, was this going to be a full scale repeat of the lake incident?

"Potter! You should mind your own business not ours, so if you just go now and.." Lily was interrupted by a tall, slight boy with dark curls.

"Hey Severus need some help there?" Regulus Black walked over to him, put his hand on Snape's shoulder. Snape suddenly remembered the plan, this year he wasn't taking on Potter himself. Behind him stood Mulciber and Avery, seventh year Antonin Dolohov, and a fifth year Wilkes, friend of Regulus. Sensing the turn of events some other people emerged from the crowd: Dorcas Meadowes captain of the Ravenclaw quidditch team, Frank Longbottom and a nervous Peter Pettigrew. Darn it, James thought as he realized Remus and Sirius were nowhere to be seen. The Gryffindors were outnumbered.

"That won't be necessary. You should all head back in" Lily spoke up as a prefect but her voice was trembling. Before she had any chance of reacting she was struck by a curse from Dolohov. The onlookers scattered and some scared first years ran for help. The Slytherins seemed more than willing to fight. Lily crashed into a pillar with a loud thump and lost her breath immediately. The last thing she saw before drifting out of conscience was Potter charging her attacker furiously.

Potter aimed for Dolohov who skilfully deflected his spell. Snape took the opportunity and shot his rival a strange curse, a white flash illuminating the sky. Potter dodged it with his quidditch reflexes. Meanwhile Dorcas and Frank were fighting ferociously to keep the other Slytherins at bay. They were badly outnumbered. The fountain was blasted to bits by a stray red bolt and water splashed everywhere, and left them wading in muddied water up to their ankles.

"Wormtail, get the others!" Potter ordered ducking from another spell. Snape went after Potter wildly, shooting curse after curse in speedy succession. Frank Longbottom cried after he was hit by Avery with something electric blue. His nose bled and he shook as if electrified and he soon fell to his feet. Now it was down to Potter and Meadowes taking on six Slytherins. They fought bravely but when Mulciber caught Meadowes with a blasting curse it all changed.

Potter put up a protective shield for her while she recovered. That moment of distraction was enough for a Slytherin to hit him with a curse. Potter saw another white light then felt his skin slice and fell to his knees. Blood flowed like water from his wounded shoulder. He could her Dorcas scream. He panted and pressed his hand to his shoulder, the pain caused to him cry out loudly. The Slytherins closed in on him but Dorcas finally managed to stand up and staggered a few meters to block their way. Just when they were about to attack an authoritative voice bellowed.

"DON'T move!" The Slytherins spun around and found Albus Dumbledore in a bright saffron robe, wearing a bewildered grimace. A second later Lupin and Black appeared. Once they had taken the situation in they ran over to their injured friend. Dumbledore gave the Slytherins a strict glare warning them not move before he hurried over to Potter as well, who was now covered in his own blood pumping in waves of dark crimson from his open wound. He had lost all the colour in his face and he was grasping for air.

"No, no, no" Sirius Black murmured, a clear note of panic in his voice. He had put his arm under his best friend's head.

The headmaster knelt beside Potter and started chanting incantations but they did no good. He sent out a patronus for help. Despite all his efforts the next few minutes he only managed to slow the blood flow down a bit.

"Whoever did this come forward" He ordered the Slytherins. No one moved an inch. "Can anyone stop it?" He was pleading now. Snape hesitated but remained in his place. Black and Lupin were on either side of James. Black looked as if he was about to sob. Pain was painted across James's contorted face. Madam Pomfrey arrived running, but to those present everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Every movement was a slow haze of twirling colours. After what seemed like an eternity she had managed to stop the blood from leaking entirely. But Potter's condition was still fatal.

"Accio blood replenishing potion" Pomfrey raised her wand. Bottle after bottle flew there and landed in a neat line. Madame Pomfrey poured them all into Potter's gaping mouth as fast as she could. The wounded boy's breathing problems escalated once Pomfrey started giving him the potions.

He silently fainted.

Flitwick and McGonagall had come out to help, realizing something had gone awry that Saturday afternoon. Even though James lay unconscious Pomfrey now seemed to have regained control of the situation. Dumbledore ordered the six Slytherins to accompany him to his office. He then turned to a much confused Peter and asked him to come along as well, but in a gentler tone. Once the Slytherins, the enraged headmaster and poor Peter had all disappeared out of sight, the ambience was eerily tranquil. It was an odd scenery; a nurse bending over a still body trying to get it to breath properly, two friends guarding them with tearing eyes, a girl sat up and tended to her own wounds while a bloodied boy rested at her feet, and lying a bit outside the scene, much like a lost piece of a jigsaw, was...

The serenity that had embraced the place as a result of James's fainting was suddenly broken as Flitwick shrieked in terror. Trailing his eyes the gathering took notice of Lily's body sprained out in bizarre angles on the ground. Flitwick's eyes widened but he soon realized she was alive. The charms professor levitated her and the bloody Frank Longbottom to the hospital wing as soon as he calmed down. Dorcas Meadowes stood up and followed, limping a bit. But she was a tough girl. McGonagall was left to clean up the mess, with a bit of magic the marble blocks came to place to recreate the fountain, and the water floated back into it, leaving trails of mud behind on the ground.

* * *

"Sit" The six Slytherins and Peter Pettigrew sat down in unison. Peter shifted uncomfortably, why was _he_ even there? He hadn't done anything. He looked around in the office. Fifty portraits hung on the walls holding fifty sallow faces, all staring them down. It looked very much like a trial in Peter's eyes.

"Mr Pettigrew, will you please tell me what happened" He began shakily, seeing the Slytherins' glares in the corner of his eye. Every now and then was he interrupted by the other boys but Dumbledore told him to go on. Oh, he hated this. Couldn't he had asked Meadowes to explain instead?

"Shocking. Now would you perhaps care to give me your version Mr Mulciber?"

They stayed there for about three quarters of an hour longer. Peter had never seen the headmaster so angry as when Avery suggested they were innocent. Dumbledore had asked, or shouted more like, if they thought him a fool. The Slytherins ended up with two months of detention with Dumbledore himself.

"That was all, I must say I'm greatly disappointed in all of you" Dumbledore nodded to the door. The boys could not waste any time getting out of there.

"Oh, Black, Dolohov, Snape" Dumbledore said "Will you stay behind just a bit?"

The three students turned obediently at the threshold though their body language betrayed a strong desire to leave.

Peter walked out of the headmaster's office with a sense of relief. He had never liked Dumbledore's ability to see right through people. He felt guilty every time and he couldn't figure out why. Peter felt someone walk into him.

"Ouch"

"You are so dead" Mulciber hissed at Peter. Peter gulped and shrunk, becoming incredibly small.

"Peter!" Peter looked up and was happy to see Remus had waited for him. He ran off to Remus without giving the Slytherins any other chance to threaten him.

"Peter, you okay?" Remus looked at him concerned.

"Yeah I'm good. How's Prongs?" They walked in the direction of the hospital wing. Peter had to jog to keep up with Remus fast pace. His friend was visibly worried and Peter had noticed that whenever the full moon was near Remus would get himself worked up over nothing. But this time that wasn't the case. They had been through a lot of trouble and injuries, they were the marauders after all, but rarely had James been this hurt. Peter didn't recall him ever loosing conscience, a miracle when weighing in all the rough quidditch games.

"He'll be all right. Pomfrey said that the curse will most likely leave a permanent scar but otherwise he'll be as good as new" Remus smiled encouragingly as if to convince himself.

"Why're you so worried then?"

"I guess I am. It's just I've gotten so used to James always having the upper hand and to see him hurt just... We'll it reminds me that there could be war any day now and were not invincible. "

"Did you ever think we were?"

"With you three around, yes. Ever since I came to Hogwarts you've been my shield and I've gotten so used to stand behind Prongs, and Padfoot and..."

"Don't worry, we'll always be loyal to each other. A war would change nothing"

* * *

"Now I don't know which one of you cast the curse on Potter" He paused and looked at them sincerely. "But I would like to ascertain you all that if you continue this path you're most likely to end up dead or in Azkaban. Please reconsider, you're all bright young men and there's no future in following that road. Believe me I've seen what it does to people" He let out an heavy sigh when he realized that his message hadn't come through. He would have to try something else.

"Another curse like that is enough to get_ all of you_ expelled, are we clear?" Dumbledore's searching light blue eyes had none of their usual warmth. Dumbledore looked them all in the eyes one by one.

"Yes, professor Dumbledore" Came their combined resignation but it was lined with treacherous defiance. Snape avoided looking him in the eyes, for though he was an excellent occlumens he didn't want to gamble a look into those investigating eyes.

"That would be all. See you next Friday in detention"

Author's note:

I'm unsure about this chapter, really. All this "action" doesn't feel quite right and I think the next chapter will be more in line with the previous ones. I would love to hear your opinions, is there too little dialogue? Too many heavy descriptions? Maybe the characters need to be explored more in the future.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: The one who watches from the shadows

"I only wish I knew who hit me" James answered Sirius inquiry. Sirius and Marlene were the only visitors left in the hospital wing that windy evening. Pomfrey had already told them to leave once, she wanted her patients to get some rest. Earlier it had been overcrowded, mostly with Gryffindors but some Ravenclaws as well for Dorcas Meadowes account. Then Dorcas had been allowed to leave and soon Frank Longbottom was released. Madam Pomfrey had had to be persuaded for quite some time, but Frank was a stubborn one, insisting he ought to be with his girlfriend. Alice had been the one the most upset by far once Sirius had calmed down. She had cried loudly, taking turns squeezing her boyfriend and Lily. Lily was slightly concussed but otherwise fine but she were to stay the night so Pomfrey could keep her under observation. James had been quite bad off not that long ago, but he regained strength significantly fast. He would get a permanent scar on his shoulder though, a crooked souvenir of the fight.

Sirius gave a sympathetic nod. He cast a solicitous gaze at Lily and lowered his voice.

"I could swear it was Snape" James turned to look at Lily too. The girl was busy saying goodnight to Marlene.

"Yeah, I know. But we can't prove anything" Marlene walked past and gave him a wave.

"'Night captain"

Pomfrey returned and reminded them about the time and that visiting hours were over.

"Just give me a sec" She gave, she'd had that argument before. Her most frequent patients were inseparable. She moved on to her office but was a little touched by Black's brotherly concern.

"I'll get you back on Reggie anyway" James grinned but he knew Sirius didn't really mean it. Deep down he loved his little brother still, even though he embraced all that was off with the wizarding society.

When they were alone Lily let out an heavy sigh. She had stood up to stretch her legs a bit. She walked to the window.

"There's a storm coming" She repeated Marlene's words from earlier. The sentence had made a strong impression on her, straightforward but at the same time ambiguous.

She sat down on the empty bed next to Potter's.

"Did all of that really happen earlier today?" The events of the day had all been explained to her earlier but she found some of it hard to believe. It was like a full scale battle had taken place. Slytherins verses Gryffindors. She didn't like it, she had hopes that they'd all get along but they had been successfully destroyed.

"If you hadn't gone for a nap just then maybe you would have known" He gave her a playful smile. She smacked his head lightly.

"I knew you hadn't really gotten over Mr Cabbage" Lily was about to reply when Madam Pomfrey walked in with a small tray.

"Here Mr Potter, I've got this special Tibetan sleeping potion for you" She put down the tray on his rickety night table.

James drank the suspicious orange liquid and cleansed his mouth with the miniature glass of water.

"Time for bed" Pleased the healer took the tray and left, putting the lights out with a flick of her wand. The students wands had she already taken care of, she didn't want any funny business.

* * *

The lightning struck, not once but twice that night. The issuing sharp crack of thunder was enough to disturb Lily's worried sleep.

Not quite asleep but definitely not awake she glanced around. She had a hard time focusing her eyes in the darkness. Another lightening lit up the room and she gasped. In the corner stood a hooded figure. Lily grasped for her wand on the nightstand but it wasn't there. Unable to speak a word she got up and ran over to James's on wake up! Please, please, please! Lily shook him violently, why wouldn't he wake up already? Damn that sleeping potion.

"Evans?" He squinted his eyes at the girl holding him. "What's going on?" Lily looked behind her shoulder, the man in the hood was still there. Lily hesitated, was he real? Why hadn't he moved?. If he was a Death Eater there to kill her she would have been dead by now. James put his glasses on. Lily didn't need to tell him, he knew intuitively what was going on. Discreetly he stretched out his hand for his wand. But it wasn't there either.

"Evans, get down slowly" He whispered. Lily obeyed and knelt down. She lowered her head so that she was shielded by the side of the bed. James hadn't got a clue about what to do since they were both wandless. His strength wouldn't be of much use if the other wanted to fight. On top of that he wasn't especially agile because of his injury. Choosing to act rather than wait Potter sat up and looked towards the corner. Nothing. He scanned the room. A black silhouette escaped through the door and out to the hallway.

"He has left" He whispered to Lily who was still kneeling on the floor. "We need to get our wands" She nodded and stood up. They walked closely together, their pajama clad arms brushing. James cast a sideways glance at Lily, she seemed beyond upset. He reached out his hand and put hers in his. Slowly they approached the door. Lily could hear every single irregular heartbeat and with each her chest seemed to burst. She hold on to James's hand tightly.

When they arrived at the open doorway they paused. James looked at Lily and she nodded. He leaned out his head and looked, first left then right. He shook his head at Lily and headed out. She nudged him and motioned for them to go Madam Pomfrey's room instead. Lily knocked on the door. No response. She knocked some more a little harder. Still no response other than the quiet echo bouncing between the walls. James moved past Lily and opened the door.

"Potter you can't do that" He had already entered. He found what he was looking for almost right away. Their wands were balanced on a large pile of paper on Pomfrey's desk. He grabbed his and handed the other to Lily.

"Let's wake Madam Pomfrey" She suggested. She walked up to Pomfrey's sleeping figure and shook her lightly. Meanwhile James stood and watched the door. When Madam Pomfrey finally awoke and found herself surrounded by her patients she was clearly confused. But her confusion soon turned into seriousness.

"Potter, is your shoulder bleeding again?" She examined his shoulder at a distance. She had wrapped an old yellowish dressing gown over her floral patterned nightgown.

"No, my shoulder's fine but..." James said impatiently. "There was someone or something out there in the hospital wing" Madam Pomfrey stared at James who turned to gaze at Lily.

"I woke up because of the thunder and I saw a man in a cloak" She swallowed, her throat was so dry. "He just stood there, immobile, and I was scared and I shook Potter. He told me to sit down and when I looked up again the man was gone"

"We looked in the hallway but there wasn't a trace of him" James filled in.

Madam Pomfrey's reaction wasn't the one they had expected. She calmed down visibly and looked at James kindly.

"Now, this isn't too uncommon. It's a side effect of the sleeping potion" James looked offended. "Please calm down Mr Potter, this isn't the first time this has happened. The Tibetan sleeping draught is effective but it can cause hallucinations for some people"

"And Lily was hallucinating too, you mean?" James looked at her unbelievably. The two of them had not gone through all this distress for the sake of a mere hallucination.

"Actually Potter, I'm not so sure it was real" Lily said carefully and tried not to hurt him.

"There we go" Madam Pomfrey lit up. She hated when students didn't accept her superior judgement. Not to mention all the times the headmaster had defied her guidelines and warnings.

"You're saying that it was a coincidence that Evans and I saw the same hallucination"

"Not exactly. I think Lily had a very realistic nightmare and when she awoke you started hallucinating her fears. Nightmares aren't as simple as people tend to think. There are variants that are more like living things, called Wandering Nightmares, jumping from one to another. I suppose you're familiar with the Albanian Lunar sect and that mass suicide last spring, kept the newspapers running for a good fortnight" The two teenagers nodded. "Well that was most likely caused by a Wandering Nightmare" James couldn't quite make out if she was messing with them or not.

"Off to bed now, and don't come in here again without my permission"

James and Lily were pushed out the door by an irritated Madam Pomfrey. Lily giggled quietly, she supposed it was half out of passing nervosity. James couldn't help returning her a smile. He liked Evans much more when she was like this.

"Wandering Nightmares?" James laughed. "I bet she made that up three minutes ago"

"Who would have known she had that much imagination?" Lily felt tense again. "What if it was a dementor?"

"Nah, it looked more.. solid I guess" When they were walking towards their beds Lily grabbed a hold of James's arm causing him to stop abruptly.

"Ouch" He said clutching his shoulder. Lily pointed to her bed. On her nightstand stood a vase filled with what looked like a dozen fresh mallows.

"Potter, I'm pretty sure those weren't there before" James gasped.

They looked through the room without any success.

"Whoever it was probably left them there when we were with Pomfrey. It seems or mystery guy is quite the runner" Lily tried to sound unafraid.

"I don't like this. Not one bit. You go to bed Evans, I'll stay up and keep a watch. I guess we can rule out dementors"

Around four o'clock in the morning she finally fell asleep, completely drained.

* * *

When she awoke five hours later Potter was resting against a mountain of pillows. His eyes were half closed. Lily had a hard time believing he was real, it seemed more like he's been replaced with an exact wax doll replica overnight. People like Potter who were exuding energy every second of the day looked so odd asleep and still. He should be playing quidditch and running around in the castle with Black.

"Evans, you awake?" James asked in a soft honey coated voice, startling her.

"You stayed up all night?"

"No biggie, I'm used... These sleeping potions don't even work on me any more" he seemed proud almost. Typical boys.

They ate breakfast in silence with pumpkin juice, toast and some potions for James. To no ones surprise they were then joined by Sirius. Upon seeing his best friend healed and happy, albeit tired, he was much relieved.

"You seem to be cosy" James was half lying with a buttered toast sticking out his mouth.

"Padfoot!"

Sirius took a toast from James's plate. He chewed it loudly, not bothering to close his mouth.

"So I spoke to Marly earlier and we've organized the quidditch try-outs for you, thought you'd be stuck here longer"

"Thanks"

"The pitch is booked Tuesday"

"Perfect. Anyone's signed up?"

"Loads, mostly first years though. Dunno why they bother, they're not allowed anyway"

They fell silent. Sirius clearly had something on his mind but he kept glancing at Lily.

"Erhm, if you're done James, Remus needs your expertise on his beasts essay"

James stared at him. He had been badly injured a day ago and Remus of all people wanted him to leave the hospital wing early? For homework?

"It's due tonight"

"Ohh" Sirius could see James's brain working. To his defense he was greatly fatigued after staying up watching all night. James put his glass away and dusted the crumbles off his pajama shirt. He went up to retrieve his own clothes from Pomfrey. She showed him to a small room and he got dressed. He and Sirius were just about to leave when they were interrupted by Lily.

"Potter wait, give me back my vial please" he froze and contemplated for a while. He then took it out of his pocket where it had stayed safely through yesterday's battle.

"Just be careful, okay?" He looked her in the eyes, his sincere concern for her well being took Lily by surprise.

"Sure, promise. See you around then Potter!"

"Call me James!" He rushed out perfectly healthy once again. Lily couldn't but envy his spirit and energy. She finished her pumpkin juice and followed James's example. It felt nice being back in her own clothes.

* * *

"Where is it?" Mary rummaged through her belongings, frantically throwing underwear and books in every direction. Alice dodged a book just in time. She picked it up in an elegant bow._ "A History of Magic"._

"Mary, you really ought to take better care of these. What are you looking for anyway?" Alice asked with an eyebrow raised. But she didn't get an answer, Mary just kept searching.

"Yay!" Mary skimmed though the pages of a Witch Weekly's magazine. "I saw an article here about the flower language ages ago"

Emmeline rolled her eyes. She sat with her legs crossed on her four-poster bed.

"You mean like red roses means passionate love while yellow signifies friendship?" She placed her textbook in her lap. "It's so stupid"

"Nooo, it's romantic!" Mary protested. "He's too shy to write me so he uses this instead"

"Wait, he?" Lily stared at her friend curiously. "Who are we talking about?" She had clearly missed out on a lot in just one day.

"My secret admirer. He sent me that" Mary motioned to an exotic deep red flower in a vase. Lily was reminded of yesterday's event. Potter had gotten rid of the flowers for her.

"Hey Mary, mind if I borrow that once you're done?" Emmeline shot Lily a disapproving look. After ten minutes Mary concluded that the flower was indeed to exotic to be featured in her magazine. She was pleased because it had to be an expensive flower then.

Lily flipped through the pages of handsome wizards and gossip columns to the flower section.

"Mallow, mallow, mallow" Lily whispered to herself. She traced her slender finger down the page and when she found Mallow she read the description silently:

"_The sweet mallow may come across as innocent but it stands for something much more passionate. According to the flower language a mallow says: "consumed by love". If presented with one of these one can be in no doubt of the giver's feelings"_


End file.
